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Category: Environment

  • European firms report investments to address climate change

    European firms report investments to address climate change

    “As the realities of climate change become more apparent, firms have to start accounting for climate risks,” said EIB Chief Economist Debora Revoltella…reports Asian Lite News.

    As Europe shows global leadership in the fight against climate change with the Green Deal and the new “fit for 55” proposals, around 45 per cent of European Union (EU) firms report investments to address climate change.

    Nearly half of firms in the EU have invested in energy efficiency, up from 37 per cent in 2019 to 47 per cent in 2020. Although EU firms show commitment, enhancing their awareness of climate change-related risks will be the key to greater climate investment.

    These are the key findings of a new European Investment Bank (EIB) report “European firms and climate change 2020/2021: Evidence from the EIB Investment Survey” that was published on Monday.

    The new report provides an overview of EU firms’ perceptions of climate risks, their investment to address those risks and the main factors influencing their decisions.

    The report builds on the EIB Investment Survey, an EU-wide survey that includes interviews with over 13,500 firms. These report findings are comparable across EU countries and the United States, as well as sectors and firm size.

    “The catastrophic rainfalls and terrible loss of life this summer should leave no doubt that climate change is happening. We can no longer afford a wait-and-see attitude,” said EIB Vice-President Ricardo Mourinho Felix.

    “Our latest study shows that if we want the transition to a greener economy to succeed, raising awareness of those risks matters: EU firms that understand those risks are more likely to invest in climate action. Regulatory requirements and transparency, as well as setting the right incentives for businesses will be crucial. Firms need to plan today to gain a competitive edge or risk losing ground to more forward-thinking competitors.

    “As the EU climate bank, we finance climate projects around the world. We can assure you, becoming green pays off — for the environment but also economically.”

    “As the realities of climate change become more apparent, firms have to start accounting for climate risks,” said EIB Chief Economist Debora Revoltella.

    “Nearly 60 per cent of EU firms perceive physical risks, while transition risk is less well understood. The majority of firms are unaware of the challenges ahead and how to adapt to regulatory changes that will affect their supply chains, products, or reputation. Enhancing firms’ awareness of these risks will be as important as reducing uncertainty about regulatory changes.

    “The ‘fit for 55’ package has opened the way for fruitful discussion among EU countries about a clear regulatory framework, enhanced climate awareness and proactive public and private investments.”

    Around 45 per cent of EU firms report investments to address climate change, compared to 32 per cent of firms in the US.

    Western and Northern Europe saw the largest share of firms investing in these measures, at 50 per cent. The share in Southern Europe is 38 per cent and in Central and Eastern Europe 32 per cent. At the country level, the differences are even more pronounced: Finnish (62 per cent) and Dutch (58 per cent) firms are at the forefront of climate investments, whereas only 23 per cent of Cypriot, 19 per cent of Irish and 18 per cent of Greek firms make this kind of investment.

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  • A win-win: Irula community prospers with mangrove forests of Pichavaram

    A win-win: Irula community prospers with mangrove forests of Pichavaram

    The MSSRF acquired World Bank aid to train the Irulas in boating, fishing, crab trapping, crab fattening and prawn farming…reports Malini Shankar

    On December 26, 2004, the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami wreaked havoc along the coasts of several countries of South and Southeast Asia, leaving an overwhelming trail of death and destruction in its wake.

    However, for a small tribe living in Pichavaram, Cuddalore district, Tamil Nadu, the tsunami would prove to be a blessing in disguise.

    The Irulas are a semi-nomadic tribal community of hunter-gatherers, who lived a marginalised life eking out a living by hunting snakes and selling the skins. But after the tsunami, the government finally included them on the List of Scheduled Tribes and provided them with the necessary certificates. This allowed them access to welfare schemes and granted them much needed food and livelihood security.

    Building bio shields

    When the disastrous waves receded, ravaged coastal communities were left picking up the pieces of their lives. But in Pichavaram, the story was dramatically different. A post calamity analysis undertaken by the scientists of the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) revealed that the Pichavaram mangroves forest protected the coastal villages from the tsunami. Mangroves lessen coastal incursion, seawater ingress, sea-level rise, cyclonic storms and tsunamis. Natural ecosystems such as mangroves, sand dunes, coral reefs, submarine rocks and seagrass came to be referred to as “bio shields” in a post-tsunami world, committed to disaster mitigation.

    The mangrove ecosystem with above-the-soil-aerial roots is very eco-sensitive. They decrease both salinity in the soil and brackishness in the groundwater. They also fix nitrogen content in the soil, thus aiding climate change mitigation. The mangroves also make ideal nesting sites for coastal fauna including fishes, corals, crustaceans, cetaceans, birds, and reptiles e thanks to the complex web of chemicals and tidal cycles.

    Though the Irulas were now enlisted in the Scheduled Tribe list, which gave them access to welfare schemes, they were still in need of mentoring and livelihood training.

    Red mangrove (IANS)

    MSSRF stepped up and successfully lobbied with the Forest Department to get fishing rights for the Irula tribe. In return for fishing rights, the Irulas were mandated to plant and protect the mangrove plantations. The Irulas were trained to plant the mangrove species in a fishbone pattern. “The fishbone pattern is an efficient method to facilitate tidal flushing which drains and quenches the aerial roots of the mangroves alternatively every six hours, thus enriching the fish catch and fish diversity,” according to the project coordinator, Priyangha. The Irulas now wait for the catch at their doorstep every morning.

    According to Nagamuthu (39), an Irula beneficiary, “When the creeks were flooded by the tides, the fish quite literally came to the doorstep of the Irulas living in thatched-roof dwellings.” He grinned, rather happy, and continued, “this has reduced our labour, increased our nutrition intake and food security as well as augmenting our income and savings.” The Irulas are also expected to patrol the mangrove forests from poachers.

    From starvation to sustainable fishing

    The MSSRF acquired World Bank aid to train the Irulas in boating, fishing, crab trapping, crab fattening and prawn farming. Apart from these fishing skills, they also imparted training in making oars, weaving fishnets, deploying crab traps, harvesting pearl oysters, boating and oaring.

    “In our mangrove project, we have integrated fish and crab culture. So plantation of mangroves is done along the bunds of the farm pond,” says Veerappan, a beneficiary amongst the Irula community in Pichavaram. 60-year-old Veerappan does fishing, crab trapping and prawn farming. Agricultural labour supplements his income along with poultry farming today. He lives in a concrete cement house given as compensation to tsunami survivors and maintains his family of 14 members, with a monthly income of Rs 20,000.

    Fishing (Wikipedia)

    Oysters are also a protected species in the Mangrove Forest Division. The Irulas are permitted to harvest protein-rich oysters for consumption purposes only, given their lack of food security and nutrition.

    Pichakanna, a tribal elder says, “No one should face starvation as we did. We are coastal dwellers, we eat fish. We knew the skill and art of hand fishing but we did not know fishing on a bigger scale till we were trained by MSSRF. Now we are able to earn our livelihood respectably, and we also get to eat a full meal. This has given us confidence, better health, better standard of living, food and livelihood security.”

    Education, inclusion and new opportunities

    Livelihood training has also opened up opportunities in eco-tourism and has gone hand-in-hand to uplift the community along with scholarships for the education of the younger generation, access to water and sanitation, awareness about menstrual hygiene, the exercise of democratic rights such as voting and better health indices, among others.

    A 27-year-old K Gunashekar is a contractual boatman of the Tamilnadu tourist department. He earns a sum of Rs 500 per day, besides a small amount as a tip, every fortnight. Posing for the camera confidently, one hand on his hat and the other, clutching a bamboo oar, he gushed about reservations and scholarships that have helped kids in the community complete their education, and go on to etch out prosperous futures for themselves, earning post-graduate degrees, preparing for competitive exams and going abroad to study and work.

    A tribal elder, Papa, ruefully remembered the days when they “were treated like slaves”, taking whatever work came their way, their women vulnerable to even sexual exploitation. “Now we have peace and happiness; we are earning our living through this work which has increased our dignity when we compare our old life,” she said. Women, who handle the terrestrial fishing operations, now have access to gender-based toilets in fish landing centres that dispense sanitary napkins and condoms. The younger generation of Irula girls is regularly supplied with feminine hygiene products at their doorstep by ASHA workers of the National Rural Health Mission.

    “Yes, menstrual hygiene of women fishers in Cuddalore district and Irula tribal women in Pichavaram has very much improved. Many awareness programs regarding menstrual hygiene have been conducted in the tribal locality,” said Dr Balaji in the Primary Health Care Centre in MGR Nagar in Pichavaram.

    From being an obscure tribe living in extreme poverty, the Irulas have transformed into self-sufficient people with help from the MSSRF, the state government and other NGOs. They are now guardians of the Pichavaram Mangrove Forest, living in harmony with nature, a model for sustainability and conservation.

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  • SAARC nations for cooperation to reduce climate change impact on fisheries

    SAARC nations for cooperation to reduce climate change impact on fisheries

    SAC Senior Programme Specialist, Grinson George, said there are scientific gaps inhibiting the implementation of rules and regulations for sustainable management of fisheries and aquaculture…reports Asian Lite News.

    In a bid to reduce impact of climate crisis on aquaculture and fisheries, the SAARC countries have sought to join hands to implement strategies for battling the phenomenon’s fallout on the sector.

    This was the outcome of a two-day online consultative meeting of fishery scientists from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bhutan held by the SAARC Agriculture Centre (SAC) as experts identified the climate crisis as a major concern in the aquaculture and fisheries sector in the region’s countries.

    At the meeting, participants felt the urgent need for implementing strategies such as introduction of climate-friendly technologies in fisheries and aquaculture as well as measures for sustainable utilisation of resources.

    Experts voiced concern over dwindling marine catch and aquaculture production, environmental disruption in aquatic ecosystems and its rippling effect on livelihood of the stakeholders, owing to climate change and associated developments.

    They suggested that technologies of seaweed farming and integrated multi-trophic aquaculture (IMTA), including cage fish farming could be adopted to reduce the impact of the crisis, to a certain extent. Besides, the sector could use ‘green fishing vessels’ with built-in design features for energy saving and fuel saving technologies to reduce carbon emission.

    SAC Director M. Baktear Hossain said the member countries have demanded regional cooperation and a platform for cross-learning and knowledge sharing to check the fallouts in the best possible way in the time of climate change.

    SAC Senior Programme Specialist, Grinson George, said there are scientific gaps inhibiting the implementation of rules and regulations for sustainable management of fisheries and aquaculture.

    “Some possible solutions can be looked upon in satellite remote sensing, numerical modelling, stakeholder perception, prioritisation of spatial sensitivity to ecosystems and many more with right interference from the stakeholders,” he said.

    ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute Principal Scientist Prathibha Rohit, while presenting India’s status report about the sector, said mariculture sector (cage farming, seaweed farming, mussel culture) needed comprehensive development in the areas of leasing policies and hatchery development.

    “Inadequate infrastructure especially in fishing harbours, cold chain and distribution system, limited scope for expansion due to overcapacities in territorial waters, deficiencies in processing and value addition, depleted stocks in inland water bodies, low adoption of technologies and shortage of skilled manpower are some of the gaps in the sector in the country,” said Rohit.

    SAC is the first regional Centre established by the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and is located in Dhaka. It started functioning in 1988 with a mandate for information management, primarily in the field of agriculture and allied disciplines.

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  • This Haiderpur wetland guide has spread his wings

    This Haiderpur wetland guide has spread his wings

    Gujjar’s first serious outing to the wetland was when he started practicing for his entrance exam for the Indian Army in 2020, soon after there was a complete lockdown due to the pandemic…reports Nivedita Khandekar

    Till a little more than a year ago, Ashish Gujjar was just another youth among the many unemployed from a ‘kasba’ Kasampur Khola near the Haiderpur Wetland, 10 kilometres from Bijnor. Now the flocks of migratory birds at the wetland that were once part of his growing years, helps him earn a decent livelihood.

    Ashih Gujjar’s village is just five kilometres from the wetland and hence he has been a regular at the Bijnor barrage area since his childhood. He frequented the marsh with friends or family, sometimes taking his cows out grazing, sometimes to till some part of land for temporary farming but never really looked seriously at the hundreds of thousands of winged friends perched around him.

    Now, as a bird and nature guide, he guides the bird watchers visiting the wetland. The Haiderpur wetland is home to more than 240 bird species, over 90 of these being migratory birds that visit in winters. The wetland is also a stopover site for migratory birds on the Central Asian Flyway.

    It is fed by the Ganga river and a smaller stream Saloni (it originates near Shukrataal, about 23 km to the north-northeast of the barrage) and is part of the Hastinapur Wildlife Sanctuary. It stretches across 3,000 acres — with a core area of 1,200 acres — in both Muzaffarnagar and Bijnor districts.

    There are 10 villages surrounding the wetland, Kasampur Khola is one of them.

    “I always loved coming to the wetland as a child. We ate ber (wild berries), we played with friends. This is such a serene place, we always enjoyed coming here,” the 23-year-old nature guide said.

    Gujjar’s first serious outing to the wetland was when he started practicing for his entrance exam for the Indian Army in 2020, soon after there was a complete lockdown due to the pandemic. He is trained in ITI and has been assisting his family in farming. It was during the lockdown that he met his namesake at the wetland which gave his life a new direction.

    Ashish Loya, an Art of Living volunteer from Bijnor is a keen birder. Since 2013, Loya has coordinated with the Forest Department and local administration and got many improvements done at the wetland, such as putting up watch towers, establishing a forest check post and making an entry gate charging fees to the visitors.

    Apart from the courses that he was conducting in Bijnor, he conducted an ‘Art of Living’ course in September 2020 for the youth around the wetland. Before and after his sessions, Loya told the attending youth, including Gujjar, about the various birds, importance of the wetland and in general how this can be helpful to them in earning a livelihood if the wetland was well taken care of.

    “It was then that I came to know about the importance of these birds. I expressed willingness to learn and Ashish bhaiyya started training me in birding,” Gujjar narrated his journey.

    Although he knew the local names of the birds, some of them, his knowledge was limited. The training helped him and others in identifying more birds and detect individual bird calls, among many other aspects. Gujjar can now identify over 200 birds and was acknowledged for his learning and contribution in creating a checklist of birds at Haiderpur by the Forest Department.

    “He is seriously into bird watching now. He discovered a nesting site of Blue-tailed bee-eaters, after which the forest department secured it,” Loya said as he was all praise for his first trainee.

    It was an exciting day sometime in mid-July when Gujjar worked as a nature guide for the first time for two seasoned birders from Delhi. Together they made a new addition to the wetland checklist, ‘Oriental Prantincole’.

    A week after that, Gujjar was with another group of birders from Delhi, and the word of mouth publicity brought Rajiv Ramaswamy, a senior birder from Gurugram, to the wetland with his birder friends.

    “The friend who had been there earlier told us on our group that they spotted a rare bird — the Indian Grass Bird — at the wetland. I was keen on it, so planned a trip. And we managed to see two of them, the Indian Grass Bird,” Rajiv Ramaswamy said on phone.

    Rajiv Ramaswamy and his group had given a preference list of birds to Gujjar, accordingly he took them around to relevant parts of the wetland. “Ashish Gujjar knows the place really well. He took us to the exact spot. And not just the Indian Grass Bird, we also managed to see the Bristled Grass Bird,” he said.

    A researcher with a digital heath company, Rajiv Ramaswamy said Gujjar has learnt a lot in such a short span of time. He, not only could name a whole lot of birds, but could also identify many of them them with naked eye just by the look of their plume. He even identified some bird calls.

    Rajiv Ramaswamy found Gujjar humble and willing to learn as the senior birder taught him to identify some more bird calls. The group also liked his demeanour that showed “he is committed and has a thirst for knowledge”.

    Loya is happy with the turn of events. “I am sure, if he does well as a guide and earns a good living, it will encourage many more youth from the area.”

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  • UK to boost cycling, walking in bid to go greener

    UK to boost cycling, walking in bid to go greener

    According to the announcement, the funding will help see the construction of hundreds of miles of new high-quality cycle lanes and aid the delivery of new schemes…reports Asian Lite News

    The UK government has unveiled a 338 million pound ($472 million) package in an effort to boost cycling and walking across the country, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps announced Friday.

    According to the announcement on Friday, the funding will help see the construction of hundreds of miles of new high-quality cycle lanes and aid the delivery of new schemes to encourage walking, Xinhua news agency reported.

    Infrastructure upgrades, changes to The Highway Code and new requirements to ensure that active travel schemes’ effects are properly assessed are among the raft of measures included in the Summer of Cycling and Walking document published Friday.

    As the UK prepares to host the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) later this year, these initiatives are expected to play a key role in the government’s drive to build back greener from the pandemic and achieve net zero emissions by 2050, said the Department for Transport (DfT).

    Last year, cycling increased more than in the previous 20 years put together, with the number of miles cycled on British roads rocketing by 45.7 per cent to 5 billion.

    Independent opinion polling and new research also published by the DfT showed that active travel schemes are supported, on average, by a ratio of two-to-one.

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  • Delhi air pollution show decreasing trend over last 4 years

    Delhi air pollution show decreasing trend over last 4 years

    A number of policy measures have been taken in the National Capital Region (NCR) to curb air pollution such as switching to cleaner BSVI fuel..reports Asian Lite News

    An early estimate from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT-D), has shown a decreasing trend in PM2.5 concentration over Delhi-NCR over the last four years.

    “Our data is showing that pollution levels have gone down. In 2020, it had anyways gone down because of the lockdown etc. But data from 2017 to 2018 and 2018 to 2019 has shown a decreasing trend,” said Sagnik Dey, associate professor at the Centre for Atmospheric Sciences, IIT-Delhi.

    A number of policy measures have been taken in the National Capital Region (NCR) to curb air pollution such as switching to cleaner BSVI fuel, installing CEMS monitoring across industries, cleaner zig zag technology in brick kilns, completion and use of Eastern and Western Peripheral Highways, which bypasses heavy traffic away from Delhi limits, and deployment of happy seeders, which address crop residue burning to an extent.

    “With all these measures, the data from the government monitoring has shown a decreasing trend in PM2.5 concentration over Delhi-NCR,” said S.N. Tripathy, head of the Civil Engineering Department at IIT Kanpur.

    New Delhi: Smog engulfs the national capital as the air quality worsens, on Nov 15, 2019. The air pollution emergency in Delhi has aggravated with the air quality index (AQI) spiking sharply to 528 on Friday morning.The AQI on Thursday was much lower at 470 in the ‘severe plus’ category. The PM 10 count was also in the severe plus category at 496 and PM 2.5 count was at 324.(Photo: IANS)

    But Tripathy also put an immediate caveat: “The time series is very short, and yet, the data is showing some decreasing trend.”

    Because of this, both Dey and Tripathi declined to hazard a guess to put a quantum on the levels of pollution, which may be in the range of 10-15 per cent or 15-20 per cent.

    Tripathy is part of the National Knowledge Network, which has been set up to provide scientific guidance to achieve National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) goals and has been pushing for adopting an airshed approach as a provincial management expanding to the states.

    The government on Saturday introduced a Bill in the Lok Sabha to constitute a commission for air quality management in Delhi-NCR and its surrounding regions based exactly on the airshed approach.

    “Domestic policies such as the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojna, which has provided a successful solution in the form of 14 crore LPG connections in India, too has been making a huge difference. Household cooking contributes to one-fourth of the mortality burden due to air pollution in the region. Not just domestic cooking, the street vendors shifting to LPG too may have helped,” said Tripathi.

    Lead is a carcinogen generated from solid fuels used in household cooking while nitrogen dioxide emissions (NOx) are mostly attributed to transport.

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  • A pond where turtles thrive on devotion

    A pond where turtles thrive on devotion

    Pathak says he once tried to lift them but found them too heavy. “Going by their size and weight, I think they are quite old,” he said…reports Asian Lite News.

    In a nondescript corner of Kanpur, a pond near a Shiva temple has become home to a thriving turtle population.

    At a time when water bodies in India are either shrinking or vanishing, the pond surrounded by a concrete jungle in Kanpur, is thriving mainly due to the religious beliefs of the Hindus.

    Hindu devotees ensure that nobody harms the turtles and visitors to the temple feed them regularly.

    Turtles are an endangered species and possessing or catching one is banned under India’s Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.

    According to Rajesh Pathak a local resident, “The temple was built about 200 years ago and the pond is much older. There is a possibility that the turtles may also be very old but things are yet to be verified by a wildlife expert. Till date, no expert has visited the pond.”

    According to him, some of the turtles have shells that are three feet long.

    Pathak says he once tried to lift them but found them too heavy. “Going by their size and weight, I think they are quite old,” he said.

    Pathak is not sure about the number of turtles in the pond. “There may be hundreds in number,” he said.

    The surface of the pond looks blackish green and going by the colour, it is hard to believe that the pond supports a rich aquatic life.

    The turtles have started responding to human voices. On Tuesdays, a large number of devotees gather at the pond because Tuesday is considered an auspicious day for feeding turtles.

    The people shout, “Aah, aah, aah….”

    Ripples break the calmness of the surface. Then, there is some disturbance on the surface close to the bank. Finally, with a splash, a turtle appears, perhaps the biggest and the boldest one — its pink mouth wide open.

    It hungrily devours the cottage cheese that people are offering. Soon, another one appears. Then, a third. In less than a minute the bank is lined with turtles.

    Once the stock of cottage cheese gets exhausted, people start throwing loaves of bread at them. But the turtles have apparently developed a taste for cottage cheese and ignore the bread.

    One by one, they start returning to the depths of the pond and soon the surface is once again calm.

    “The turtle is much revered in the Hindu mythology. It is mentioned in some texts that the earth rests on the back of a giant turtle. In some, it is written that the turtle is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Many Hindus believe feeding turtles will help them in getting salvation. Hence people feed them,” said Pathak.

    “Whatever may be the reason, it is good that if the people are feeding the turtles. Try to imagine what would happen if people stop feeding them. They may starve to death,” he added.

    “It is not unusual if a small turtle sneaks into a home but it is safely returned to the pond,” said Pathak.

    In the past, some people have tried to poach the turtles but were chased away by locals.

    A retired forest official said a turtle population flourishing in a pond in a straggling, unplanned city was no less than a miracle.

    “Where in Kanpur can a person today see a turtle? Either in the zoo or in the Ganga,” he said.

    “Once, Kanpur had hundreds of ponds. Most of them have disappeared over the years. But if there is a pond that supports a big population of turtles, then it is something very unique. And we must remember that till date no government or any organisation has protected the pond or the turtles. Still, both have survived for such a long time. Steps must be taken to preserve the pond and the lives in it,” the official added.

    Rain is the only source of water for the pond at present. Pumps are installed that draw water from the ground and fill the pond. The water level in the pond will then remain constant throughout the year,” said Pathak.

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  • India constructed 703 km of highways using plastic waste

    India constructed 703 km of highways using plastic waste

    Use of plastic waste in construction of road protects the environment from adverse impact of waste plastic….reports Asian Lite News

    So far 703 km of National Highways have been constructed with use of waste plastic in “wearing coat of flexible pavement”, the Parliament was told on Thursday.

    Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari told the Lok Sabha, in a written reply, that the ministry has issued guidelines for mandatory use of waste plastic in periodic renewal with hot mixes and in wearing coat of service road on national highways within 50km periphery of an urban area having population of more than 5 lakhs.

    Use of plastic waste in construction of road protects the environment from adverse impact of waste plastic.

    Plastic roads consist of 6-8 per cent plastic, while 92-94 per cent is bitumen.

    In 2016, Gadkari had announced the usage of plastic waste in road construction in 2016. Since then, plastic waste has been used in constructing roads in 11 states.

    According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report, as much as 3.3 million metric tonnes of plastic waste was generated in India, which is approximately 9,200 tonnes a day (TPD), in 2018-19.

    The report stated that the total municipal solid waste generation is 55-65 million tonnes and out of it, plastic waste is approximately 5-6 per cent.

    To regulate use of plastic, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change came up with draft Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2021, which proposes a ban on the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale, and use of specific single-use plastic from January 1, 2022.

    Specific single-use of plastic include plastic sticks for balloons, candy sticks, ice-cream sticks, plastic flags, and thermocol.

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  • Intensity of severe cyclonic storms increasing: Study

    Intensity of severe cyclonic storms increasing: Study

    The findings revealed the possible linkage of La Nina years with increased severity of tropical cyclones…reports Asian Lite News

    Reporting an increased amount of water vapor content in the troposphere, a new study by Indian scientists has reiterated that the intensity of severe cyclonic storms in the North Indian Ocean region has shown an increasing trend in the past four decades.

    The scientists studied the role and influence of critical atmospheric parameters in large-scale environmental flow and El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on tropical cyclone activity in the North Indian Ocean and investigated the role of additional parameters such as water vapor and zonal sea level pressure gradients.

    The findings revealed the possible linkage of La Nina years with increased severity of tropical cyclones.

    “The study reported an increased amount of water vapor content in the troposphere, at 1.93 times during the past 38 years as compared to the base year 1979,” a release from the Ministry of Science and Technology said on Thursday.

    During the past two decades (2000-2020), the La Nina years experienced almost double the number of intense cyclones compared to the El Nino years.

    Besides, during the La Nina years, the positional shifts in average cyclogenesis of intense cyclones in Bay of Bengal have been analogous with the observations for the Western North Pacific Ocean basin.

    According to meteorologists, El Nino, Spanish for “boy child” (because of the tendency of the phenomenon to arrive around Christmas), is an abnormal warming of water in the Equatorial Pacific Ocean every three to five years and can last up to 18 months.

    Severe cases of El Nino, as in 1997/98, are responsible for drought, flooding, as well as areas of formation for tropical cyclones and severe winter storms.

    La Nina means “the little girl”, the opposite of El Nino, and refers to the abnormal cooling of ocean temperatures in the same Pacific region.

    The increasing intensity of severe cyclonic storms with major socioeconomic implications is due to atmospheric parameters like higher relative humidity, especially at mid-atmospheric level, weak vertical wind shear as well as warm sea surface temperature (SST). This indicates the role of global warming in bringing about this increasing trend, the statement said.

    The impact of global warming due to climate change and its effect on extreme weather events such as frequency and high-intensity tropical cyclones formed over global ocean basins is a matter of concern.

    High-intensity cyclones have become more frequent in the North Indian Ocean, causing significant risk and vulnerability to the coastal regions.

    The scientists’ team included IIT Kharagpur’s Jiya Albert, Athira Krishnan and Prasad K. Bhaskaran, who worked jointly with the Centre for Disaster Mitigation and Management, K.S. Singh from the Vellore Institute of Technology, and the Department of Science & Technology, Government of India, under the Climate Change Programme (CCP).

    The study was recently published in the journal ‘Climate Dynamics’.

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  • Climate Change: Bhumi urges people to think about making a difference

    Climate Change: Bhumi urges people to think about making a difference

    Flash floods, drought, forest fires, disease outbreaks, mass extinction. Instead of regenerating our planet we are putting billions into finding our next home/planet.”…reports Asian Lite News.

    Actress Bhumi Pednekar is always bothered about environment and climate crisis. Now she took to social media to express her concern about the impact of climate change on our planet. The actress highlights the necessity to regenerate Earth, which is heating up owing to climate change.

    Bhumi, who has been vocal about climate change, tweeted: “Climate Change is real. We have accelerated it to levels of heavy repercussions. Our planet is heating up. Flash floods, drought, forest fires, disease outbreaks, mass extinction. Instead of regenerating our planet we are putting billions into finding our next home/planet.”

    Commenting on the actress’ tweet, netizens shared their opinion.

    “The manufacturing of clothes that we wear are polluting our water bodies. We are destroying rain forests just to make luxury apartments and also with that animal habitats also reducing. Climate change is not related with finding home over other planet. We need to expand our horizon and stop using things that are responsible for climate change,” commented a user.

    “Each individual needs to think how he or she can make a difference. Cannot have best of both worlds. So, are we ready to turn off our AC, use bicycle instead of car staring today?” shared another user.

    On the work front, the actress will feature alongside Akshay Kumar in the upcoming film, “Raksha Bandhan” directed by Aanand L. Rai.

    She also has “Badhaai Do” with Rajkummar Rao and “Mr Lele” with Vicky Kaushal lined up.

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